Gulf airlines deny their planes were intercepted by Qatar fighter jets

The Financial Times has reported that Etihad Airways, Flydubai and Air Arabia Airline have denied that their aeroplanes were intercepted by Qatari fighter aircrafts, whilst Emirates Airlines refused to comment.

The Qatari Minister of State for Defence, Khalid Al-Attiyah, also denied the UAE Civil Aviation Authority’s claims that Qatari fighter aircrafts intercepted an Emirati civilian airplane during its flight to the Bahraini capital Manama.

Read: Qatar files complaint at UN after UAE violates its airspace

On Monday the Qatari Foreign Ministry also denied the UAE’s allegations. Lulwah Al-Khater, the Foreign Ministry’s spokesperson, said that this claim comes one day after an Emirati military airplane heading towards Bahrain flew through Qatar’s airspace following a similar incident in December. Al-Khater indicated that Qatar will take the necessary legal measures.

On Monday the US command at Al-Udeid Air Base in Qatar said that it had not received any reports of the interception of a civil airplane in what was considered a denial by the US of the UAE announcement.